


Tia

by Loki_Silvertongue_laufeyson



Category: Loki - Fandom, Marvel, Thor - Fandom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-12
Updated: 2016-01-26
Packaged: 2018-05-13 07:19:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5699824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loki_Silvertongue_laufeyson/pseuds/Loki_Silvertongue_laufeyson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Warnings for violence, possible mental health issues and emotional trauma....</p>
          </blockquote>





	1. One

Tia was born in a small village of farmers who lived peacefully on the edges of a forest in the foothills. Although the village was on the same realm as the golden city of Asgard it was vastly different. Dirt streets stretched between the rough houses and every single occupant of the village pulled together to help the community survive. Each individual had something unique to offer and a caring support network to fall back on. 

Tia's mother was alone, a single parent who brought a screaming girl into the world as she left it. She held her child for mere minutes before passing on into the realm of the dead. Tia was considered an orphan and registered as such despite the possibility of her father still being alive. He was absent when his child and her mother needed him most so they stripped him of that title. Biologically yes she had a dad, but where it counted he was nonexistent. The villagers all heard the grueling birth and although healers were on hand it proved too difficult and the mother was much weakened. Everyone heard when the hoarse screams of agony gave way to the piercing wail of a newborn announcing themselves to the world. They all attended the funeral less than a week later too. Tia was taken in by a couple who lived just outside the village and had so far failed in their effort to have a child of their own. 

Now Tia had magic, she could move things around with a simple thought even before she could crawl. Once she could walk it became increasingly difficult for her to control and magic was always snapping and crackling around her like electricity. The static often made her pale hair stand up and her odd grey eyes glow with a knowledge far beyond her years. When Tia entered her sixth year her adoptive parents sat her down. "Now then, this cant go on! We have endured your antics long enough. No-one wants a woman who can do magic, it is so lowly and deceitful. We only want what is best for you, you do understand dear?" Tia nodded with tears in her eyes for despite her agreement she did not understand. Magic was as much a part of her as her nose and for an infant of merely six summers it was distressing to say the least. Being of a young age she could not always control her magic, particularly when exhibiting extreme emotions. The next time they found her practicing magic was less than a week later. Her mother immediately set about belittling her " Tia don't you love me? If you did then you would stop this. You selfish, selfish child." Again Tia was conflicted, suppressing magic was unpleasant and tiring and although certain that she could do it if she needed to, she was not entirely sure how. On the other hand she could keep her magic but lose her mum and as a tiny six year old, she still needed and wanted her mother. 

For a month Tia tried to contain her magic and managed to limit her use of it to times when she was alone. Her father was the one who caught her this time and he slapped her so hard that she sprawled in the dust. He grabbed her arm tight enough to bruise and locked her into the wood shed. She cried and cried, then called for her mother. Tia could not calm herself enough to think straight or she would have opened the lock with magic. Eventually she drifted off into an exhausted sleep. She awoke when her mother opened the door, "Tia dear come here" her voice was soft "Your father is only trying to protect you, you are but a child and we know whats best so why don't you run along and apologize like a good girl" Mutely Tia nodded and squeezed past her mother. 

Gradually Tia withdrew from people and became a quiet and often overlooked part of society. Her family continued to beat and humiliate her for using magic, they tore her apart and she developed a huge sense of self-loathing and anger. She forced herself to completely stop using magic, locking it away deep inside her. Having no release, her magic turned inwards and evolved into a constant pain. Her head often felt like shards of glass were digging in from all angles and her body ached with a constant, bone-deep exhaustion. So in the end she left the farm late at night and traveled, letting her magic flow and hating every second. The once exhilarating rush of energy through her veins became a curse, it felt like pins and needles as the magic rushed through her. She now hardly spoke and often seemed to vibrate with tension from the strain of holding herself together. Magic threatened to rip her apart from the inside as it pushed for escape from its bodily incarceration.

In her fifteenth year, her father began to take her into town with him after forcing her into a hooded cloak. "You look like a freak with those grey eyes and white hair, you behave yourself or by the Norns you will get such a beating." She merely nodded and tried not to shudder, stress made it harder to control her magic and it was likely to surface today. She was well used to the feeling of his heavy hands descending upon her or the sharp crack as a whip leaves a mark upon her back and soul. The villagers had not forgotten the young women who left her child nor had they forgotten the name of her daughter. As they neared the village her father placed a hand around her shoulders and pinched viciously as she cowered away. The grocer was the first to meet them and her father chatted away to him like old friends. After a brief introduction they moved on, Tia's magic crackling around her protectively as she felt the villagers watching her every move.

The day was going fine, Tia spoke more than she had for months and was perfectly good mannered. Her magic had calmed a little and she relaxed slightly, her father guided her with cunning fingers that pinched and twisted at every slight misdeed. Eventually he reached the tavern and entered, leaving her outside. A street boy watched her as she awkwardly looked around herself and tried to shrink into the wall. He picked up stone and threw it towards her, it landed at her feet and she frowned before looking up and seeing his dirty face peeking out from behind the wagon. Now that he had her attention he beckoned and she looked around before taking a few nervous steps off the porch, Tia gained the middle of the street before her feet froze and she could move no more. Conflicted, Tia stared between the tavern door and the boy, she desperately wanted a friend but a louder part of her brain demanded survival over friendship so reluctantly she returned to her original spot. When she looked up again the boy was gone and a sad smile crept onto her face as she struggled with her crushing loneliness. Just as it threatened to overwhelm her, a prickle of magic announced a presence behind her and she swung round only to see the boy standing there.

He ignored her obvious cringe when he held out a hand and soldiered on "Names Scotty ma'am. Pleased t' meet ya" she politely took his hand and told him her name. "So whats a pretty lass like y'self doin out here with the townies?" He was small and looked brittle, but so full of energy that his haggard appearance was often lost behind his bright smile and dancing eyes. "My father..." Tia began to explain with a slightly hoarse voice. "Ah yes, yes, YES! Ay you is talk of the town miss. Not often the tongues get waggin, 'cept the cat house if ya get me." He leaned in conspiratorially and then laughed so loudly she jumped. "Now then, tour of the town I dare say. Now shaking your 'ed wont do ya any good. It might jist fall right off if ya please and then we shant have any fun. Come along miss, your pa wont be along for a time if ya ask me." Deciding to be brave she stood took the proffered hand. The pair journeyed off with Scotty talking ten to the dozen and Tia struggling to keep up. He suited her just fine as she didn't like to talk and he hardly stopped. "Now then miss, watch your step that heres the horse yard. Stables if ya like, and see that man? Red face, covered in leather? Blacksmith. Woah steady on there, watch out the way doll thats them hunters they not been back long and food is to be had so they aint looking where they put their feet." The pair rounded yet another corner and he paused for breath before starting up again "Oooh my favourite, if it aint our little toy soldiers." He turned to whisper in her ear "kingsmen and local guard, peacekeepers ect but jail aint pretty so just be on ya guard miss." He finished the tour by rooftop and together they returned to the tavern mere moments before her father appeared. He grabbed her by the arm and staggered down the road, she glanced back but Scotty was gone.

A week passed and they returned to the village for supplies, it had been a relatively peaceful few days as her magic had remained hidden- probably due to exhaustion from the last trip. "Sir please can I go look around? I'm only under your feet here and you don't want me slowing you down." Her father glared down at her and she shrunk away from his anger but after a few long minutes of silence he bade her to get out of his sight and to be home before dark. Quick as a mouse she scuttled off and flew round a corner, straight into the arms of Scotty. "Tia, good ta see ya again doll." She stepped out of reach as soon as possible and nodded at him quietly. " Now then where d'ya want to.." He was interrupted by a loud bellow "SCOTTY. YOU GET YA GOOD FOR NOTHING TUSH DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW." With a grimace he grabbed her hand and together they headed to a little hut on the edge of the village. "Ma, this is Tia. She lives out on the farmstead with them Daalgards. Tia this is my ma. She may look fierce but wouldn't even do nuthin to a fly." The woman was tall and of ruddy complexion, she was skinny but had a glow around her that spoke of life and vitality. Tia and Scotty spent the day working side by side to complete the chores that had been set out for them. Somewhere around noon, his mother reappeared with some food, Tia tried to turn it down but they insisted and the three sat down to eat in companionable silence. Tia felt less lonely than she had in a long time and began to let her guard down around them. After lunch, the two children headed off into the beautiful meadow that surrounded the village. Sights of great beauty can have different effects on different people, in the happy and free it serves to push you up in a rising tide of joy. But Tia was neither happy nor free so it only made her sadder. Scotty was still unusually quiet as he watched the expressions flit across Tia's troubled face. The two sat side by side for what seemed like an age until by unspoken agreement they rose and headed back to the village, Scotty walked her halfway home and she ran the rest. 


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for violence, possible mental health issues and emotional trauma....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment any thoughts! I am going to try my hardest to finish this one and would love to know what you think of my writing.

She was 17 years old and the harvest failed, in vain she tried to save some of the mouldy crops but nothing could be salvaged. There was very little to eat and she ranged far and wide looking for anything that could be edible. She hunted, drawing the bowstring with cracked fingers and exhaling through chapped lips. Any food that was to be had was taken mainly by her so called parents with Tia just managing to scrape by on the scraps from their table. They had money but the village fared no better, nothing was to be had and slowly the bustling town grew quiet. The eerie silence was broken only by squabbles or a wail of stricken grief as the hunger proved too much and another life was extinguished from the world. Her parents fought more than they ever had before and more often than not they took their rage out on Tia. Her father was almost always drunk, as he swindled their money away on mead and whores. He would come home of an evening and Tia would be waiting, caught between her depressed bedridden mother and an abusive alcoholic father. "You worthless scum!! Tia you should go work in a brothel, least then you could earn your keep." He was leering into her space and without thinking Tia pushed him so she could get out of the corner. With a wordless yell of rage he fell backwards and cut his cheek on the edge of the table, Tia should have run but instead she froze. Fear made it impossible for her to move and she waited, not even breathing as her father rose and grabbed her by the hair. Holding her upright he punched her again and again in the stomach then dropped her to the floor. She fell and curled up in a ball, gagging at the pain. Less than a second later his foot connected with her ribs. When she came round it was dark, she could feel the walls pressing in all around her and the panic of claustrophobia set in. For what felt like years she stayed inside her own little slice of hell until she was too weak to even bother moving at all. Her magic tried to seek a way out but her exhausted body tired even quicker so it soon began to fuss around her like a mother hen. It could sense that she was nearing the end of life and sought to make it easier in anyway possible. She felt delirious as the deep ache of her ribs and gut faded into the past. It was like the bruises that covered every inch of skin belonged to someone else. The whip marks were not on her back, nor the bruised eyes upon her face, the chapped lips and failing lungs belonged to someone else and Tia was at peace with what was about to happen. The lid of the trunk opened with a bang and she blinked against the light, a faint cry all the opposition that her body could muster as rough hands pulled her from the darkness. 

The road back to health was a long and painful one for Tia, she was severely malnourished and sported five broken ribs along with hundreds of cuts and bruises. A scar ran from her chin all the way along her jaw to her left ear. The story was that she tripped whilst hunting, reality was that her father threatened to slit her throat and left it there as a warning. The fast broke with the string as new life reached the valley and the village once more began to live harmoniously. Scotty and Tia met at every chance possible and spent most of their days together, hunting, exploring or just generally making mischief. His mother continued to treat her like a daughter and Tia knew love once more. The villagers noticed the frequent bruising and despite them raising it with her parents, it was brushed off as accidents made by a clumsy child. Tia was sat in her freezing room one night in early march when both parents stormed in. "There she is, sniveling little traitorous wretch. We took you in out of the goodness of our hearts and you betray us. YOU. UNGRATEFUL. LITTLE. BITCH." Each word was punctuated by a kick once she hit the floor. Tia was still trying to process what they had said. "Y-you took me in?" She managed to grit out through the pain. Both adults started to laugh. "Of course we did. We are good people and yet we failed to distill that sense of chivalry in you. Your mother was nothing but a common WHORE who got knocked up by some good for nothing. OOH No she didn't know the father, I guess that you inherited that sense of ill-breeding." Tia had tears in her eyes and struggled desperately to push herself up and flee the room. Her father anticipated the movement and punched her hard in the face. " Stay down like the dog you are. Who do you think you are, going to the villagers for help. They think I'm abusing you. Oh the irony, it is discipline and if they knew... If they knew what you are then not a single person could give a rats ass about what happens then. You could kiss your little boyfriend goodbye once and for all." Tia went hot and cold allover at the same time, they knew about Scotty! They turned to leave, her mother first and then her father following after dealing out more kicks to the ribs. She pulled herself up to standing then vomited from the pain, barely strong enough to crawl back into her bed and shiver herself to sleep. Nightmares plagued her dreams and she woke less rested than before. Everyday found her more and more exhausted as she went to sleep late and often woke before light. Her magic was more uncontrollable than ever as her exhausted body gave up the fight. Ever since that time in the trunk, Tia had been more open towards her magic but still loathed it. For her eighteenth birthday the Dalgaards forced her into magic cancelling cuffs. They trapped her magic behind a glass wall and she could feel it, pulsing and pinching inside her head. She had never noticed what a comforting and constant presence it had been until it was gone, forced to swirl in the chaos of her mind. Tia became paranoid and flighty, she flinched at loud noises and sudden movements and Scotty noticed it with concern.

It was May and the meadow was in flower, Scotty had just turned 19 years old and he had shot up. His boisterous nature had calmed and he was the rock in her world. He had grown strong and ruddy with a smile that brought a glow to his face. Scotty was the only person she trusted and could relax around. The two of them were sat on the bank of the cold river that flowed past at a slow pace. It came from the mountains so was crystal clear but also shockingly cold. Scotty's long legs stretched out in front of him and Tia had her head in his lap, he was gently stroking her hair and she dozed lightly. The sun danced across her face and she would have been peaceful if not for the raging headache, she was but a teacup in a storm and her magic strained and fought to emerge. Scotty watched her tense shoulders and the pained wrinkles that never quiet disappeared and his heart ached. Their relationship was something akin to love but there was no physical emergence of it, they shared long looks and conversations of silence and both usually desired a need for contact. It was mainly Tia who wanted to be able to touch him but she could not voice her need for human contact so Scotty indulged her and anticipated her needs without spectacle, she knew and was silently grateful. "Scotty?" Tia sat up slowly and shifted til her hip touched his and their shoulders bumped with every breath. "I'm going to run away." The five words were out there and she felt him tense beside her, glancing up she saw a nerve tic in his jaw. "I cant stay here, you know this." Still Scotty was silent. He could hear the rising note of hysteria in her voice and the anxiety that radiated from her in waves but could not speak past the lump in his throat. "What about me?" It was whispered and he hated himself for sounding weak but he needed her as much as she needed him. Tia turned to face him but he wouldn't meet her gaze, gently she touched his chin and he glanced up for a second before looking away again. "You could..." She started and he wrenched away from her sharply, she flinched away before taking a moment to quench the fear that she couldn't quite prevent. "I could what? Come _with_ you? Are you crazy?!" He was on his feet and she watched him with an ashen face. "How could you even begin to think that I could leave my mother for you? Look I love you okay. Tia I love you but I can't leave. Not now, Maybe not ever. You _know_ who weak she is. My mother would die if I left and I can't have that happen." Tia watched him warily, tears pooling behind her eyes before she blinked them away. The one person that she cared about was rejecting her. Tia thought she knew sadness, she thought that she knew betrayal but this was like a knife twisting deep inside her. A voice in her head was clamoring for attention and it succeeded. 'No-one will want a woman with magic.' 'You look like a freak.' 'Even Scotty doesn't want you.' A sickening mantra played over and over, louder and louder. Her magic roared in an effort to protect her but only added to the growing quagmire of self-loathing. She was so far inside her own head that she didn't notice Scotty crouch down in front of her til he grabbed her hands. With a muffled scream she threw herself backwards and scrambled away. "Tia..." It was his voice that brought her back, she struggled to calm her erratic breathing and only then noticed that she was shaking. Her palms were bloody from where her fingernails had cut into her palms. He was looking at her with concern, "You know that I can't come with you and it is nothing to do with you. It's not because I don't like you or that you are not good enough okay. You are perfect in every way and I love every part of you but I can't leave." He is pleading with her and Tia nods mutely, hardly able to hear him over the roaring in her ears. Scotty can see that nothing he has said has sunk in and he feels an overwhelming sense of devastation. She is slowly withdrawing behind the walls that exist with everyone else except him and smoothing her face into a cold, hard mask. 

Tia went home, more emotionally tired than she had been in a very long time. Even more than when the Dalgaards informed her of her true heritage for though it stung, she felt no overwhelming sense of loss- they had not been parents to her for a very long time. But the flash betrayal that came from Scotty hurt worse than any blow and induced a more overwhelming panic than the dark little box. Some tiny, tiny part of her knew that he spoke the truth but the demon on her shoulder won again as it had so many times before. She paced in the dark lane outside her house and eventually came to the conclusion that she had to journey to Asgard itself. Somewhere that she could start afresh and where _they_ could never find her. She eventually retired to her room and with numb fingers began to pack. She placed a clean set of clothes in a small pile and dug out one of her 'mother's' thick cloaks. Tia's own cloak was threadbare and did little to keep out the cold, this other one was warm and almost brand new. Tia felt that she should leave a note to Scotty but was overwhelmed with anger, besides she couldn't write. A selfish part of her wanted to spite him for rejecting her when she needed him most. So she grabbed her stuff and left quietly. Turning around she came face-to-face with both Dalgaards and they were furious. "Where the hell have you been!! Cavorting with that Hayseed mostly likely. It doesn't matter know, YOU. WILL. NEVER. SET. FOOT. OUTSIDE. THIS. DOOR. AGAIN." Her so called father advanced on her slowly and instead of fear, Tia felt an overwhelming sense of power rising through her. Magic buzzed violently inside her head and her mouth tasted like copper and bile at the same time. With an arm strengthened through hardship she pushed and he fell backwards, passing out cold as he hit the floor. A lamp fell nearby and the room began to fill with smoke, all Tia could hear was a vicious ringing in her ears and the screams as her mother tried desperately to pull her father out of the hut. Tia moved on numb legs, she staggered out of the hut and into the lane then kept walking. A primitive part of her being forced her into moving away from the danger. A small part of her cried out at the loss of home and family but she was no longer piloting her own body and could not have gone to help, try as she might.


	3. Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wooo chapter three!! No idea how long this fic might be but stay with me.. Its all planned out pretty much now :)

The sun appeared above the mountains and washed over Tia as she wound her way through the rolling hills. Her breathing was labored after the smoke inhalation and the slowly healing ribs that twinged with every motion. Her thoughts wound back to the afternoon before, it felt like years had passed since she had rested with Scotty in the peace of the meadow. Scotty. The name brought yet another flare of pain that ran through her body. It felt like the wind had been knocked out of her and she stopped and sank down to the ground. She stayed there until the sun set and then hurried off on her way. The moon was huge in the sky and the stars appeared to mock her misfortune. When morning came she was cold, hungry and frustrated. She had not eaten in days and her body- despite being used to starvation- was quickly weakening.  
On the fifth morning she came across an injured boar, Tia killed it and lit a fire. She cooked as much as she could but her kill was not to be had in peace. Wolves appeared and forced Tia to grab what she could carry and climb a tree. The meat did not last long and she watched forlornly as the wolves scrapped and bickered over the sizable carcass. Her stomach was full for now and sleepily she wedged herself into the branches and dozed. The sun disturbed her and Tia woke up panicked, pushing backwards and falling flat on her back. The already sore ribs flared up with new vigor as well as a myriad of other complaints and she lay winded on the floor for a long time. Groaning, Tia climbed slowly to her feet, studiously ignoring her body. There was probably a freshly broken rib and that didn't even bear thinking about. Tia just grit her teeth and continued on her way, mounting another small rise she paused and the breath left her body in a sudden whoosh. The Golden city lay planned out below her, it glinted and seemed to beckon. Open-mouthed she stood and stared, she should reach the city by sundown and a deep pool of dread settled inside her. It sat with the self-loathing, guilt and anxiety that already existed, her magic buzzed sharply as yet another unpleasant emotion surged through her. She so wished that Scotty could have been there to witness the first glimpse of the city and palace, her eyes stung and she angrily shook her head to clear the thoughts from her traitorous mind. She trekked now with a new energy, compared to her previously lethargic pace, her bodily hurts retreated as adrenaline took over and Tia had only the goal of getting to the city as soon as she could. Her bare feet were filthy and bruised but they picked their way safely down the hillside and along the river valley. Hours past and the city did not seem to get any closer, Tia was not deterred and strode on. Her eyes remained firmly on the ground after she stumbled more than once in her haste.

Tia had not thought about what she would do when she arrived in Asgard and she was too busy taking it all in to care. The streets of the lower town were filled with the cries of merchants; farmers and townsfolk swarmed all around her. She was jostled roughly to the edge of the street and from there climbed up onto a stack of crates, this gave her an ideal vantage point and she let the view hypnotize her. Taverns spewed out drunken men and giggling maidens as the light slowly faded. It was only when her stomach grumbled unhappily that she began to climb down. She wandered the streets in the hope of stumbling across some scraps but found nothing, Tia was miserable now as it had started to rain and the temperature was dropping fast, she wished that Scotty was there as a guide or even just to offer comfort. But he was not, she had betrayed him and the chances were that they would never meet again. If the Dalgaards died then she was a murderer, if they didn't then it still meant that Tia could never go home. She did not belong among the normal people, she was nothing but a monster in an ill-fitting skin. Everything she touched ended in devastation and grief, and as much as it pained her to admit, Scotty was better off without her. Her thoughts had entered a spiraling dive and she became lost inside her own misery, the deep pit in her brain had sucked her close to the abyss and Tia was tottering on the edge. Her magic was nothing but a dull throb in the back of her head as she moved deeper and deeper within herself.

Tia slowly came back to her senses and glanced around herself with apprehension, the glistening town took on a sinister edge in the dark. Things moved in the shadows and although the silence was not as oppressive as when she was in the forest, it still tore at her already frayed nerves. Glancing about herself she decided that it would be better not to move and so sank down into the dirt. Too nervous for sleep, Tia sat and stared around her-every singe nerve stretched tight and her magic screaming inside her head. Two soldiers turned down the street she was in and Tia pressed back into the shadows, they were muttering and cursing as they made their way towards the crates. "Hey you there. You know the rules... No lurking in the street." They shouted in her direction and despite every part of Tia begging her to run, she froze. Unable to move, think or even breathe she stayed where she was. Fear paralyzed her and just served to piss the guards off. "You heard me the first time. I see you there cowering like the dog you are. Get up and get off. of. the. streets." Again Tia couldn't move and she cursed her traitor body, every limb felt heavy as the enraged guards approached even closer. Suddenly the panic pushed the lethargy off like a blanket and she exploded up and out of the dirt. The guards caught her easily as they anticipated an attack. "So you think you own this street do you? Insolent little whelp. We'll teach you to follow orders." Tia could easily read where this was going but was powerless to avoid the first punch from the lead lined gloves. The punch landed in her stomach and she doubled over, gagging. The two Einherjers continued to beat her until she fell to the floor, then they dug in with their feet. Her entire body began to shut down and she drifted further and further away from herself. Their shouts and taunts sounded hollow- like they were shouting down a tunnel- and she lost the ability to even curl up and protect herself. They stopped when she went completely limp, their breathing harsh and the smell of blood, alcohol and vomit filling the air. They seemed to realize that they had gone too far as they ran off, leaving the girl bleeding out on the pavement. Tia woke up in a small room surrounded by anxious faces, everyone in the room was wearing the same clothes and they all had the royal crest stitched onto their chests. "Wh....Where..?" Her voice was hoarse and she barely muffled a scream of pain when her chest flared up. All of her injuries began to make themselves known and tears leaked out of her eyes despite her best attempts to hide them.

The crowd withdrew and left one, kindly looking lady stood next to her bed. Everyone else had flooded out of the room like water from a basin, some bustled in and out as they carried out various tasks and others didn't come back at all. "My name is Nanna. You are in the servants quarters in Asgard, one of our stable boys brought you in this morning. He found you out on the street where you had been left after a severe beating. Do you remember what happened at all?" While she spoke, Nanna was healing the most serious of Tia's wounds. Her hands glowed slightly as she pressed them against the broken ribs and fractured arm. Tia held very still, barely breathing as she tried not to flinch away from the magic. Disgust was flowing through her veins, clamoring so loudly that she could scarce ignore it for very long. As soon as Nanna had healed the broken bones, Tia signaled that she had had enough. "No more. Thank you for your service but the rest can wait." Nanna expressed her concern but Tia would not be shifted so in the end she also withdrew, leaving Tia to drift into an uneasy sleep. Tia awoke many hours later and turned her head to see a gourd of water and a plate of food, with a groan she sat and began to eat whilst observing her surroundings. The room that Tia was in was huge, more of a cavern than a room. It had myriads of servants rushing in and out of the tunnels and corridors that must lead to the outside and the palace. Yellow lamps hung from the walls and there was a distinct lack of windows leading Tia to the conclusion that she was underground. The air was slightly musty but not stagnant due to the amount of people who moved through it. The corridor directly opposite led to dorm rooms for the servants that did not have homes or chose to stay at the castle. Next to that was the home of the healers, if one traveled into the healers dorms one would find it open and airy as it is above the ground, at the far end of their rooms is a door into the healing wing. Tia was not in the healing wing as it is for the royalty or injured soldiers. Common people have their own healers in the town and servants are allowed into the sick bay that is set up in the corner of the previously mentioned cavern. Another, huge doorway leads off of the main cavern into the palace and it is this corridor that sees the most use, everybody seems to have a purpose and the knowledge of what they should be doing. Other doors lead off into the town or other parts of the palace. This ginormous empire is watched over and closely monitored by the quartermaster who goes by the name of Viggo, a tall, broad man with a quick temper and a perchance for violent punishments. His rooms are situated within the palace itself and not beneath it.


	4. Four

Tia woke with a start from her nightmare and stared around, trying to get her bearings and catch her breath. Her aching body was covered in sweat, whilst her traitorous lungs refused to gather air. Shakily she slid out of bed and began to shadow fight, it was a practice that Scotty had insisted she learn and was a way of keeping fit. Her body protested to start with but she soon warmed up and the shaking stopped, her lithe body was thankful for the exercise after days of monotony and walking. After a short while she slipped back into her bed and began to meditate, extending her awareness out away from her like a bubble. Deep inside her mind she rested and let the calm of the moment refresh her, magic buzzed behind its barrier and a sharp tug of irritation pulled her out of the meditative state that she had achieved. Even with it locked away, this most loathed part of her refused to let her forget. The bracelets around her wrists burnt runes into her skin and stopped the itch of magic from ever being scratched. The blackened scars still burnt with pain but it was so constant that it was relatively easy to ignore, only when her magic was most desperate to break free did she feel them, being bunt into her skin over and over. They felt like red hot knives, cutting into her wrists and now she was focusing on them the pain was dreadful. 

Tia looked up at the sound of footsteps and saw Nanna approaching followed by a huge man. "Sir, here is the woman you requested to see." Nanna dropped her head and then moved away when he motioned her to leave, Tia picked up on the anxious glance and the fear that lined Nanna's face. "I am Viggo the quartermaster in control here at the palace, and you are..." He was impatient with the way he spoke and his mouth hardly moved at all, his voice was a low growl and his eyes were hidden behind a hood. "Tia" She responded, no need to call him sir as he currently had no control over her. "Well..Tia" His mouth curled in distaste as he spat her name at her "I am going to offer you a deal, you work here in the palace as a servant. You have no family here, no place to stay nor any money. So how about it? You come here and work for food and your keep and a little bit of money." It was in no way a suggestion and Tia knew it, besides he was right... Tia did not have anything else to do. She could not go home and there was no place for her in Asgard. "I'll do it." Her voice came out strong and he smiled at her, it was a horrible sight and she tried to suppress a shudder. "Well get up then. I will assign you a guide for day one, the rest you are on your own. Need I tell you what will happen when you put a toe out of line?" He laughed and then strode off, leaving Tia to once more question her life. A short while later, a young girl approached the bed holding a pile of clothes. "My name is Brianna but call me Bree. So I hear that you are the newest maid? Oh uh here are your clothes. Come on come on hurry, we cant be late!" Tia looked her up and down approvingly, she was bouncy and loud- just like Scotty. In hardly any time, Tia was dressed and then she introduced herself to Bree. The two girls picked up Tia's clothes and headed to the dorm rooms to drop them off, turns out that they had the room to themselves and after quickly stashing the clothes they began their day. Bree talked quietly but nonstop as they ran errands, made beds, hung out laundry and swept floors. It was dark by the time they returned back to the rooms and Tia barely had the energy for a bath. Tia was asleep before her head hit the pillow and it felt like mere minutes before Bree was there, shaking her awake. "Tia get up." A stack of clothes hit her in the face and she rolled over, groaning. "Tia I mean it. Get up" Tia refused so Bree leapt at her and forcibly removed her from the bed. "Woah there, I'm up." Tia murmured, disgruntled by the treatment. When they were both dressed, they headed to the servants kitchen for breakfast and also to be tasked for the day. Tia was to be cleaning floors in some of the lesser used private chambers. These were next to the Royal quarters and served as rooms for guests and distinguished individuals. While the two girls made their way to the palace, Bree gave out hurried instructions on where to go and what equipment to use. Tia hurried off, repeating the directions to herself over and over again until she arrived after several detours. Looking up made Tia feel incredibly small. Huge, gilded rafters lifted the soaring ceilings which appeared to be dripping with golden statues and patterns. The walls were mainly plain where they showed in between massive murals and mosaics of great battles and fearless warriors. Floor to ceiling windows lined one side of the corridor and led out onto a white marble balcony, the foothills of her home could just be seen as a grey smudge on the horizon and a sudden pang of longing kicked Tia in the gut. She turned her back on the window and snatched up the broom, her previous awe being quickly replaced by white hot anger. The cuffs on her wrist began to burn their runes into her marred skin as her magic fought to escape, pain and anger combined into a ringing noise that was impossible to hear past. How dare these people live in such finery when there is such desolation and despair across the realm. Tia thought back to her village, her people were born into the mud, fought for life off of the mud and eventually died and lay beneath the mud. Everyday was a struggle and yet here, here they can afford to lay golden tiles as decoration and paint themselves on walls. Tia angrily slopped water down the hallway and mopped it furiously, the mindless work doing nothing to dispel the unpleasant emotions. 

By the end of the day, Tia was exhausted and sweaty. Her aching back creaked with every movement and she wanted nothing more than to sink down and never get up, Bree saw her coming into the cavern and walked across to meet her. "Tia.. My goodness girl you are a mess. Come on, I waited for you. Lets go wash up before dinner." Hardly awake enough to comprehend what was happening, Tia blindly followed as they advanced towards a cave that sloped steeply downwards. Presently the air began to heat up and steam could be seen swirling in the light from the torches that hung at regular intervals down the hallway. "These are the servant baths, the common folk have public ones in the town and those who live in the palace have the choice of a private one in their chambers or one in the private halls. The water is heated by an underground spring, here..." Bree handed Tia a soap and then quickly undressed before slipping into the dark water, the light was very dim in here and Tia was too tired to care about modesty so she followed suit. The warm water felt like heaven as it rose up her aching body, for the first time in a while Tia let herself relax and be soothed. The bruises that had previously stained her entire rib cage were now yellowing and fading into oblivion. Her body was gradually regaining its condition although her hip and rib bones were still painfully prominent. The two girls finished up their bath and then went to get food, very little time passed between their bath and them both being fast asleep. The next morning Tia was again assigned to floor washing, her already sore back screamed as she sunk to her knees next to the other servants. Each girl had a cloth and a bucket, they all knelt side by side and crawled around the huge, hard floor. Tia's knees were numb and her cracked knuckles bled a little, stinging as the soap found its way in. This went on for days, then weeks and gradually Tia's hands hardened, bruises no longer bothered her and she knew her way around the majority of the huge palace.

Tia had been in Asgard for close to a month now and still her thoughts strayed to Scotty on a daily basis, her adopted family only crept in to her mind whilst she slept and they terrorized her nights. She was exhausted, the hard work combined with long hours and restless nights, Tia found it harder and harder to function adequately. The only good thing that came with her out of her previous years was the ability to wear a poker face and ensure that no matter how tired she got it would be hard to tell. She was falling apart inside but on the outside she was perfectly together, nothing slipped through the cracks in her mask and if they did then she was a master at disguising her true meaning and talking rings around those who inquired. For the most, she was content to let others be so long as they left her alone. She had a few chosen people that were let closer than others but she knew the power that people can exercise over those whose trust they held and so a mask was still up, albeit a thinner and more forgiving one. It was around this time that Tia was transferred onto a team of maids in the Royal Chambers. Viggo had asked to see her and then tasked her with cleaning the young prince's room, the last maid had just left the palace due to an emergency back home. 


End file.
